Plasma cutting arose in 1950, due to the need to cut metals that could not be cut with a torch, such as stainless steel, aluminum and copper.
The plasma cutting process uses electrically conductive gas, plasma gases include argon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and mixtures, as well as air and oxygen.
Plasma cutting can cut any type of metallic material, being especially suitable for steel. Plasma cutting allows high definition and quality of cut.

In 1965 the first laser cutting machine was used to drill holes in diamond dies, today laser cutting has many applications and can be used with many different materials, its applications range from cutting, welding, heat treatment, coating, vapor deposition, etc.

What are the differences between laser cutting and plasma cutting?

Laser cutting is a digital production technique, it is fast and far superior to other systems in terms of its performance and productivity.
The plasma arc cutting process uses electrically conductive gas to transfer energy from an electrical power source through a plasma cutting torch

Laser cutting makes clean cuts that do not leave many edges and presents an excellent finish, in addition this technique allows the cutting of very narrow or small pieces or to make very small holes, thanks to its great precision.
The quality of laser cutting is optimal in thicknesses around 15-20mm. For greater thicknesses, the quality of the cut drops notably.
Plasma cutting allows a high definition and quality of cut, guaranteeing high precision finishes.

One of the differences that laser cutting presents with plasma cutting lies in the initial investment and operating costs, being higher in the case of the cost per laser since the cost of laser cutting equipment is very high compared to other technologies cutting materials.

Another difference to note is that with plasma cutting all types of metal materials can be cut, which is not the case with laser cutting, which cannot cut excessively reflective metals.
On the other hand, plasma cutting only cuts metallic materials and laser cutting can also be used to cut other non-metallic materials such as plastics, glass and wood.

Neither of these two cutting processes is capable of cutting 3D materials.

Laser cutting has many more applications than plasma cutting which is only used for cutting, whereas laser cutting can be used in cutting, drilling, engraving, ablation, structuring and welding processes.

In the market there are different metal cutting processes, at Hefesto Mexico we offer our clients laser cutting and plasma cutting depending on the demands of each cutting operation and always thinking about the quality of our services.